Railway 200 - members' campaign toolkit

2025 marks 200 years since the world’s first passenger train set off along the Stockton & Darlington Railway, marking the birth of modern passenger train travel.

So, it is certainly a time to celebrate!

Launching on 1 January and running throughout 2025, we are joining in the national Railway 200 celebrations, honouring rail’s remarkable past, its role today, and its importance for a sustainable future.

We’ve produced a range of digital tools to support members in amplifying messages and highlighting activities under the Railway 200 campaign.

Check out the toolkit below, and don’t forget to get in touch with the comms & policy team for further support on news@communityrail.org.uk.

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How community rail can get involved

The community rail movement is ideally placed to get involved with Railway 200. Members are encouraged to promote local messages by spring-boarding off the national, once-in-a-generation celebrations to showcase the hard work and dedication of your community rail partnership or station group.

Events, activities and promotions will focus on four strategic themes:

Innovation, technology and environment
Education and skills
Celebrating rail people
Culture, heritage and tourism

We know many of you have lots of exciting activities planned but, if you’re looking for inspiration, why not consider:

Sharing your stories on social media using #Railway200
Speaking to local partners about Railway 200 – is there something you could deliver together for a bigger impact?
Talking to your train operator and discussing what opportunities there are to showcase your line
Putting on writing competitions, heritage trails, art exhibitions or station open days
Promoting the work you’ve already done and weaving this into the celebrations
Establishing what you want to get out of the campaign – do you want to use it as a recruitment drive to gain more volunteers? Do you want to engage with more schools/colleges in the area? Are you looking to reach a bigger audience to promote travel along your lines/through your station?

Remember, the Community Rail Network team is here to support you! If you have an idea or would like further support to develop and deliver it, please do let us know.

As well as supporting members to plan events and amplify messages, Community Rail Network will also be taking part in the national campaign. Amongst other activities and promotions, including sharing with members our monthly social media schedules, in 2025 the Community Rail Awards and Community Rail Week will be centred around Railway 200 celebrations. Watch this space for further details!

Current opportunities and calls-to-action

Put your event or activity on the Railway 200 map

Share stories of how the railway has influenced you and your community

Virtual wave-off

To mark the launch on 1 January 2025, we are encouraging community rail to take part in a virtual ‘wave-off’, aligning with our heritage railway colleagues who are taking part in a joint ‘whistle-up’.

Our ‘wave-off’ will be delivered through videos posted to social media and aims to get lots of people talking about community rail and the launch of Railway 200. Find out more and how you can get involved here.

Video content callout

We’re asking members to submit video clips sharing your favourite aspects of community rail and what the movement means to you, which we will use across our own Railway 200 promotions next year. Videos should be no longer than 30 seconds and of clear video and audio quality. Send your clips or any queries to our comms & policy team.